Miscellaneous 09/17/2010
It's a little known fact that my childhood nickname was YoYo but I couldn't match this guy - petapixel.com/2010/09/16/wig… via @petapixel Add Comment Miscellaneous 08/28/2010
Later this year, I'm attending a reunion of DUKW drivers and (assuming they want me to) I've been toying with the idea of putting on a display of colour slides I took during the nuclear tests at Christmas Island over fifty years ago. With that in mind - and conscious of the fact that I've lost the original projector I had all those years ago - I had a look at the internet and came up with what is, almost certainly, the finest bargain I have ever found on eBay. Please, click on Download File (below) to see what I mean. 
If the exercise proves to be successful, I might consider taking bookings from Masonic Lodges, The Womens' Institute, The Boy Scouts Association, The Girl Guides, The Edinburgh Fringe and Carribean cruise liner companies. Miscellaneous 08/20/2010
No doubt that there will be some who will suggest that even asking the question is being racist, but should the indigenous population of the UK be worried by this sort of language? Miscellaneous 08/13/2010
I can't explain why, but I find the image contained in this file quite fascinating......
I have no idea what or who it represents, but the way it seems to sink into the background of the frame intrigues me. I would be interested to know if anyone knows what it is or where it comes from. Miscellaneous 08/09/2010
If anyone should doubt my wife's commitment to the well-being of our bird and animal neighbours, have a look at this....  By the way, buying in bulk is very much more economical than relying on high street retailers - not that the local birds, badgers, and other nocturnal visitors give a toss where it comes from. Miscellaneous 08/06/2010
 This is my latest purchase from eBay; and, since it sucks and is very small, I've decided to call it John. Miscellaneous 06/14/2010
An acquaintance has pointed out similarities between a recent photograph of myself returning from a walk..........  ........and the cover of a book.........  ......I didn't know whether to laugh, cry, or give a 'V' sign. Miscellaneous 06/06/2010
Having been home for a couple of days, I've had time to reflect on our Golden Wedding Tour of New York and New England and have begun to realise (probably, for the first time) that advancing years are beginning to have an effect; if not (yet) upon the state of my mind, then, almost certainly upon my physical condition.  Now, I recognise there are factors which may have exacerbated the situation (jet-travel, different water, cuisine, time zones and weather conditions, for example). Furthermore, there are some irritations which can strike at any age; like these insect bites which I may have received during our last walk around Lloyd's garden. Unfortunately, however, the fact of the matter is that I've rarely experienced so many minor complaints within such a short period of time - and the conclusion I have drawn from these somewhat aggravating circumstances is that my body may not be as robust as it was - and (more importantly) as I imagine it actually is. Perhaps, I should think about spending a little less time with my laptop and getting a little more exercise. There may be occasions, however, when that might be more easily said than done......  .........Lloyd's family cat, Cato, making himself comfortable. Miscellaneous 06/05/2010
In the original timetable for our visit to the USA, we had intended to return on the Tuesday after Memorial Day. However, when we made those plans, we hadn't known that the performing arts school which our elder grandson attends was holding an end of term concert on that very day. Obviously, it would have been extremely disappointing to miss the performance; so, I contacted Virgin Atlantic to change our flight to the following day. Not really surprisingly, the students put on a good show and we were glad to have been there to see it. Furthermore, it was quite interesting to see Lloyd doing a pretty good impersonation of myself being 'father of the singer'. Sadly, much of the following day was somewhat less enjoyable. For a start, it was hard to ignore an element of impending doom as our departure approached. Secondly, our younger grandson was feeling quite ill. He was, later, diagnosed with what is called strep throat in the States. At the same time, having not expected us to be there, Lloyd had arranged to rehearse with his new ensemble. So, apart from strolling around to admire the work they had done in the garden during the visit, there wasn't an awful lot his mum and I could do.   All in all, it was something of a relief when the time came for Lloyd to drive us to Boston. By the way, there can be few airports (at Terminal E, at any rate) where it is easier to get from a car to the check-in desk and this - apart from an unfortunate encounter with the resident security jobsworth - contributed significantly towards a comfortable couple of hours as we waited to board our AIRBUS aircraft......  From take-off to touch-down, the flight was excellent and the wheelchair assistance at Heathrow was significantly better than we experienced at JFK. Adam, our younger son was there to meet us and although we felt quite well when we arrived home, it wasn't too long before jet-lag kicked in and we spent most of the day asleep - dreaming, no doubt, about an experience we'll cherish for a long time. Miscellaneous 05/31/2010
Following on from my previous blog, I'm afraid the benefits I hoped to gain from a hot bath proved to be short-lived because it soon became apparent that I was a couple of stages beyond being knackered. In addition to suffering from the heat, I may have developed a slight case of food poisoning and, as a consequence, I spent the best part of a day-and-a-half recuperating. Fortunately, I recovered in time to take advantage of a very kind invitation to visit a rather fine golf club - where, although I only managed to play the first nine holes, we were using buggies: so, I completed the course by just putting out the remaining holes before enjoying the excellent clubhouse facilities. My wife and I worked in golf for the best part of twenty years and, when we left, in the late eighties, some progressive clubs were starting to take advantage of technology - using computers, for example, to assess handicaps. I doubt, however, if anyone in those days could have imagined golf buggies would be equipped with GPS systems that tell the golfer the exact distance to the hole (and where it is on the green) together with information such as the location of hazards and a comprehensive record of everyone's score. For my part, I was pretty amazed. Since that enjoyable experience, although I've been kept quite active (visiting my grandsons' schools, a local mall, a bank-holiday flea-market, a BBQ and trying my hand at cycling for the first time in over forty years) the other highlight of my stay has been attending a Memorial Day Parade. Without wishing to make too much of an issue of it, it's hard to deny that many folk in the USA seem to place a higher value on demonstrating their patriotism than most of us do in the UK............    | |||||
